BIXBY, Okla. — A Tulsa County judge sentenced a Bixby father to five years in prison for killing his teenage daughter in a car crash.
The judge sentenced Elliot Binney as part of a plea deal on Monday morning.
Binney accepted a plea deal in April, where he faced the following charges following a 2024 crash that killed his daughter, Shelby.
- First-degree manslaughter
- Leaving the scene of a fatal crash
- Two counts of child neglect
- Reckless Driving
- Transporting an open container
- Driving left of center
Shelby died when the vehicle Binney drove left the road, rolled over and ejected her from the car.
Binney left the scene of the crash, three other family members suffered injuries in the crash.
In the arrest affidavit, Binney told police he took a "gulp" of vodka while driving his family and was passing cars in a no-passing zone. He was later arrested in Checotah.
2 News Anchor Erin Christy did an exhaustive search into Binney's background, including prior convictions. DA Steve Kunzweiler said those cases were not admissible.
Local News
Expansive criminal record for father involved in crash that killed daughter
This is an 85% crime, meaning Binney must spend at least 85% of five years in prison before possible parole.
Binney's wife, Brittany, stated her husband's sentence, saying that "no sentence can restore our daughter, and no one feels her loss more than her father."
You can read Brittany Binney's full statement here.
Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler also issued a statement following Binney's sentencing.
“The death of 16-year-old Shelby Binney is no doubt a tragedy. Her family was deprived of her smile, her youthful enthusiasm, and her companionship. Her father, Elliot Binney is responsible for her death and he is going to prison for her death.
While some may think that criminal prosecution is like a Hollywood produced TV crime drama like Law and Order, the actual job of criminal investigations, and presenting proof in a courtroom, is not for entertainment.
It is not for political gamesmanship or for the exploitation of victims. Local law enforcement does the best job it can in gathering evidence of the crimes which can be proven in a courtroom. It is a difficult job, and it takes experience to make sure that the evidence introduced in a courtroom is admissible and reliable.
In Mr. Binney’s case the provable facts were that he was driving recklessly in raining conditions at a high rate of speed. He lost control of the vehicle and it rolled several times resulting in the ejection of Shelby and injuries to his wife and two other children in the car. Mr. Binney fled the scene – leaving his wife and children behind. He was eventually apprehended in Checotah, Oklahoma. Only Mr. Binney knows why he left. It was those behaviors which resulted in his conviction for the crimes of First-Degree Manslaughter, Leaving the Scene of a Fatality Collision, and Child Neglect.
While there was evidence of alcohol in the car and consumption of some of that alcohol by Mr. Binney, there was no provable evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that he was driving his family while he was impaired. If that evidence existed, the Bixby Police Department would have arrested him for that offense and my office would have prosecuted him for that offense. What was provable was his reckless driving, the death of his daughter, the injuries to his wife and children, and his leaving the scene.
It is easy to be a Monday morning quarterback – to speculate on what the evidence might have been. However, the law is clear – we should only prosecute those crimes for which we have admissible evidence which will convict a person charged with a crime.
Occasionally, other factors also affect the ability to prosecute a case – to include the cooperation of key witnesses. This case was no different. Mrs. Binney was put in the very difficult position of losing her daughter while also knowing her husband was responsible for Shelby’s death based upon his reckless driving. She opposed my position that her husband needed to go to prison. Sometimes criminal cases are like that – where a victim may prefer on outcome, and I have to take a position inconsistent with the victim’s desires. That is what makes this job tough, but it is a job I have been doing for over 36 years.
The Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office places its focus on every case to find truth and seek justice. Each case has its own unique facts and circumstances, and this case was no different.
Despite the pleas of Mrs. Binney and her children. Despite the pleas of Mr. Binney. Despite the pleas of Mr. Binney’s extended family members – despite all of that, Judge Holmes sentenced him to prison based upon my recommendation. What Mr. Binney did after the rollover crash is what got him a prison sentence.
Judge Holmes ordered a presentence investigation of Mr. Binney by the Oklahoma Department of Corrections. That agency, which performs hundreds of these investigations every year, agreed with my recommendation for the disposition of Mr. Binney’s crimes. Mr. Binney requested a judicial review of his sentence after he serves two years in prison. Whether the court chooses to modify his sentence – upwards or downwards – is solely up to Judge Holmes.
I find it interesting that there are those out there who proclaim a different version of what justice should be in this case. However, those individuals never spoke with the members of the victim’s family to see what they wanted done. Those individuals never spoke with any of the crime scene witnesses. Those individuals never read all of the police reports, nor did they review the crime scene evidence. Decisions made on charging and punishment should be made by those who have experience and the actual evidence in hand – not by individuals who all too readily speculate what they think the evidence may be, without ever knowing what it actually is.”
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